


Graveyard of the Earth

by Matthew1972



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dark, Character Death, M/M, Post-Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-11
Updated: 2015-04-11
Packaged: 2018-03-22 09:47:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3724351
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Matthew1972/pseuds/Matthew1972
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They said the Once and Future King would one day rise again, but what if by then humanity had doomed itself beyond redemption?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Graveyard of the Earth

An eerie wind of midnight frost blew across the plain. No being in these lands breathed with life anymore. Life had long ago died out, but it made no difference to Merlin… not anymore. He no longer felt the loss of it like he once did. His heart did not beat in his chest, nor did his lungs need air. Not even his soul warmed at the thought of love. No, centuries ago he had succumbed to the shadows and even the idea of humanity turned to nothing but a vague memory.

Vampires used to be creatures caught in a myth; the idea of them nothing more than a mere story to fuel the imagination of writers and readers. The truth however was far less romantic than anything ever put into words. Humans found out the hard way that vampires were nothing but hollowed out versions of themselves when slowly everything alive died out.

The bite of another undead person simply hurt and even drinking blood to stay 'alive' was nothing but a figment of the imagination. In truth no creature on Earth had any of the crimson red liquid left in their veins. They were all as undead as the next creature of the night. Everything turned to dust… everything.

Merlin shivered, sensing what little remained of the day was about to die too. One hour of sunlight now and it seemed more than ever that the end of the planet was near.

So many had been driven to insanity in the dark. Vampires killed by their own kind out of fear and despair. Barely any survived, just the few unlucky ones who - like him - had hung on to their last shred of their humanity for some ill conceived reason or another.

His weakness was love and loyalty, even now after an insane amount of centuries gone by his heart had not quite turned to stone. Merlin never could or would forget Arthur. He had loved the king with his entire heart… and then some more; for he had been his destiny and his future. Camelot was not even an idea anymore, hadn't been in ages, but still Merlin could not let go of the promise that one day Arthur would rise again when the world needed him.

"Fool!" Merlin chastised himself for his foolish beliefs with a shout into the new night sky. Arthur had never come, probably would never come either. Even if he did it was by far too late now for humanity was beyobd saving. The Earth was dying and no sword could stop it, not even Excalibur. Destiny mocked him, but even in the bleak world around him Merlin wanted desperately to find hope again.

"Why?!" His cry of frustration faded into the vast emptiness.

Too soon Arthur got ripped from his life. They had barely admitted to their love and the secrets they kept when his lover died in his arms. Nothing he had done had prevented Arthur's fate, no… Merlin had failed him right up to the end; and beyond.

It should be so easy to cross the bridge into Avalon now that he was as good as dead, yet Merlin could not give up on the promise the dragon made long ago. So many centuries had turned to dust in a blur of nearly forgotten memories and time, but still Merlin held on to one simple glimmer of hope. Was it misplaced?

Merlin looked up to the moon in despair. The silver crest offered him no answers to the question he had asked himself over the last few years, or were they decades? The true concept of time held no meaning to him anymore. He was so old now that the time he spend with his lover seemed more like five minutes rather than some fifteen years.

Was he wrong to waste his immortal soul on these mere moments? Was he wrong to trust in a legend even older than himself?

With a sigh he looked back across the graveyard of the past. The future seemed lost, his endless wait about to draw to a halt one way or another. One day the planet would turn to dust and soon he could not longer be. Maybe the moment had come he would try and find that bridge after all…

* * *

Blue eyes tore open, spooked by the wind and the howl in the distance. "Why?" The anguished sound reached his ears. Arthur blinked, with the same question on his lips. His voice however did not turn his confusion into sound.

Why indeed was he here? Looking around at his surroundings he did not recognize where he was. The lake, the tower… gone. His servant also strangely missing from his side and leaving him feel bereft. How long had he closed his eyes?

Once more he blinked. The pain in his chest had gone and he could even breathe again. That was until he smelled the thick filthy air. A cough wormed its way upwards into his throat and as it escaped he heard it fall dead upon the rocks around him.

What was this place? It was so dark and even the moon seemed somehow less alive in a way. Unaware of it Arthur gripped his sword even tighter as he took his first steps back into the land of the awake. He stumbled. Quickly he scrambled back up from the dirt, but as he did another cough threatened to spill…

Ready for its escape he masked the sound of it with the back of his hand. First he needed to be sure he was safe, so it would not do to warn bandits or any other ill intended creatures to his presence. Arthur plodded on throuigh the clouds of dust, using his sword sometimes to stay on his feet. Dark and eerie winds threatened to throw him off his feet. Had he died and gone to some dark place? What was this world?

"Merlin!" He hissed out, suddenly remembering that his servant and lover had been nearby when everything had still looked normal. When no answer came he sighed. Of course, trust Merlin to walk off.

Another blink and the truth came back to him, taking away his breath faster than the wind and the dust around him could. He had died after all! On the banks of a lake, Avalon they called it. Merlin was there when he fell into the darkness of death. The same man who had magic unlike any he had ever seen… and he had accepted it as part of his charms.

Even now Arthur smiled, knowing why he had trusted in his servant in spite of the lies, and in spite of the hurt. Merlin had always been at his side and Arthur had always needed him to. Why then were they parted? Was it because Merlin was still alive where he was not? As he walked on Arthur struggled to reconcile the memories of his life with the world around him. Nothing felt right and yet…

… A forlorn figure in the distance drew his attention. They moved, a tiny motion almost concealed by the darkness if it weren't for the moon and its glow. Everything about the figure seemed to shout 'leave me alone', yet something about them made him want to get closer. Unable to stop himself Arthur walked on. He needed answers, dammit. Anything would do as long as he could make sense of whatever trouble he'd landed himself in.

In the back of his mind he clung on to the many memories of his lover. The thought of his insolent prattling and the way Merlin writhed underneath him made Arthur smile in spite of the grim world around him. If this truly was the life beyond how long would he have to wait for Merlin? Well, he supposed, it would not matter, because he would wait for him for as long as it would take. Their parting felt unnatural to Arthur, more so now than it ever had before.

Just a few yards left to go and they sighed. While the man's eyes were still obscured by the darkness Arthur felt a shiver travel over his spine in recognition of the lanky shape and the way the person sat lost in thought.

"Merlin?"

His voice sounded far too croaky and quiet to reach the lonely figure. Arthur swallowed passed the dust. Then he tried again, hoping for a better result.

"Merlin!"

* * *

The sound of his name made Merlin look up. That voice tinged with just a hint of arrogance… so familiar, so impossible… could it really be him? No, it was impossible. He could not let his hopes build. Oh dread, too late…

Over the distance his eyes met with the man he had missed more than he would ever be able to say. "Arthur", his mind screamed to him, but Merlin dare not trust in what he saw. What if the image of his lover faded back into nothing? His feet and legs however betrayed him. Before he realised it he was running towards him to find out for sure if their moment had really come.

They met somewhere in the middle. The dead world and the cold dust around them almost forgotten in their haste. Finally they were one again… finally. Hands met with a solid body and strong arms wrapped around Merlin. This was truly the real thing; Arthur was back!

Lips met, tongues sought entrance... until Arthur pulled back from his side. "You're cold."

Merlin hung his head, "Go figure. Destiny is a bitch. For a long time you are dead while I am alive and now here we are, with the tables turned."

"What…", Arthur spluttered.

One long finger of Merlin's pale hand made his lover falter. "Hush, no more words. Just please, make me feel something again."

To his happiness Arthur had not changed one bit and he moved in to take what they both craved. Soft, demanding lips found his and they heated his skin. Oh yes! Merlin melted into the touch with a groan of pleasure. A flash of warmth caressed his spine and it touched his bones. What was going on? "More", he ground out as they came up for air.

Nothing could stop their reunion from getting to completion where Merlin was concerned. Every touch filled with love and warmth seeped into his healing body. It became a drug he just had to get more of. Everything about Arthur, from his kisses to the way he made his spine tingle with need, took Merlin back to what felt like the world of the living.

But as their bodies joined in the way Merlin had longed for since the day he was left behind he felt a change in the heat by his side. The skin underneath his hands seemed somehow paler in the light of the moon and Arthur no longer felt almost too hot to touch. What…no… his mind was playing tricks on him, wasn't it?

"Seeing that the world is dead and you are not truly alive either, I will follow the same path", Arthur promised firmly in his ear. "Screw destiny. Today we will walk across the bridge into Avalon together. No more goodbyes, Merlin. Never again, this is my promise to you."

* * *

Two sides of the coin came together at the end of everything. Merlin fell asleep in the arms of the man to whom his heart had always belonged. Neither man ever woke up again, not even when the wind picked up its pace and covered them with a layer of thick dust. Soon the blanket of what used to be covered their lifeless bodies, making them a part of the graveyard of the Earth.

Life as humanity knew it had ended. Darkness had befallen every single creature which once walked the planet. But somewhere beyond the misery and on the other side of an ancient bridge two forever connected souls clung together in defiance of destiny. They walked the path beyond to meet up with the friends who crossed over long before them. The round table was reunited and the idea of them remained; even when their world was nothing but a blip in the vast universe.


End file.
